The present invention relates to soft-serve frozen dessert machines. This invention is related to three other inventions for which applications are being filed concurrently, entitled "AERATOR FOR VISCOUS MATERIALS", "FREEZER WITH GROOVED HEAT EXCHANGE SURFACE", and "FREEZER WITH INNER CORE".
In the prior art, most soft-serve frozen dessert machines have a freezer which receives a liquid mix near the back of the freezing chamber and which dispenses soft-serve dessert at the front of the freezing chamber. The dispensers are manual, with the operator holding down a lever to fill up a cone or cup to a desired level. This gives the owner of the establishment very little control over portions. Portion control is desirable from two standpoints. First, it is desirable to provide a consistent product to the customer from one day to the next, so that the customer can know in advance what he will be getting when he orders a medium cone, for example. Second, portion control is important in controlling the profitability of the product. If the portions vary over a wide range depending upon who is operating the machine, then it is difficult for the store manager to set the price for each product, since he does not know what the cost of the product is.